Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
---|---|---|---|---|
8076762 | Energy | 2014 | 9 Pages |
Abstract
A MWT (miniature wind turbine) has received great attention recently for powering WISP (Wireless Intelligent Sensor Platform). In this study, two MHAWTs (miniature horizontal axis wind turbines) with and without gear transmission were designed and fabricated. A physics-based model was proposed and the optimal load resistances of the MHAWTs were predicted. The open circuit voltages, output powers and net efficiencies were measured under various ambient winds and load resistances. The experimental results showed the optimal load resistances matched well with the predicted results; the MHAWT without gear obtained higher output power at the wind speed of 2Â m/s to 6Â m/s, while the geared MHAWT exhibited better performance at the wind speed higher than 6Â m/s. In addition, a DCM (discontinuous conduction mode) buck-boost converter was adopted as an interface circuit to maximize the charging power from MHAWTs to rechargeable batteries, exhibiting maximum efficiencies above 85%. The charging power reached about 8Â mW and 36Â mW at the wind speeds of 4Â m/s and 6Â m/s respectively, which indicated that the MHAWTs were capable for sufficient energy harvesting for powering low-power electronics continuously.
Related Topics
Physical Sciences and Engineering
Energy
Energy (General)
Authors
F.J. Xu, F.G. Yuan, J.Z. Hu, Y.P. Qiu,